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Thank you!!!

Our party was AMAZING!!! Thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate with us and to those who supported us from afar! Thank you for helping us reach our birthday fundraising goal of $8,000!

You can now purchase our exclusive b-day "Be Revolutionary" t-shirts by visiting our shop! We'll be updating this page with more Everyday Revolutionaries and ICAH Spotlights as our 40th year rolls on. We still welcome your nominations.

ICAH's work to support and protect the health, rights, and identities of youth wouldn't be possible without you. Here's to 40 more years!

THANK YOU!#BeRevolutionary

Everyday Revolutionaries

Everyday Revolutionaries

Everyday Revolutionaries

By recognizing Everyday Revolutionaries, ICAH honors youth and allied adult leaders who have contributed to the success of our community and have embodied ICAH’s values. Learn more and nominate someone you know!

Jasmine has served as president of I Am That Girl and Students For Choice, campus clubs where she has fostered safe spaces for her peers to engage in difficult conversations regarding consent, sexuality, shame, and more.

Robles' passion and dedication to trans activism as a core part of their faith uplifts the idea that identities do not have to feel oppositional. Their work pushes the boundaries of all binaries and challenges people to expand their ideas about identity.

Kami's writing reached youth across the city and encouraged critical thinking around sexuality. She challenged her peers to utilize their voice to improve the systems that influence their lived realities.

Sam believes strongly in the power of the individual to make a change in their own lives as they continue learning and expressing themselves. He respects the vitality of young people and is an ally in the full sense of the word.

Nik's clarity in leadership, faith in abundance, and care when working through conflict/disrupting oppression has resulted in the growth of irreplaceable communities that demonstrate the best of human capability.

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Most of my work with ICAH is in a supportive, "behind the scenes" capacity: some of my daily activities include ordering supplies, keeping track of donations, dispatching merchandise orders, and invoicing. I like that I can enable other departments to do their amazing and important work better by assisting them with the smaller, everyday stuff.

Q: What makes a good party?A: FOOD! I'm the one at the party that hangs out by the food table. There's nothing like a good dip or huge pizza. Anything and everything with garlic and cheese, please!

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I use my past traumas as fuel for my work, whether that's where I get my paycheck or what I create and do outside of the office. I work every day for causes and/or organizations that educate folks on healthy boundaries, consent, and sexual health.

Danielle Parker

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: Board Member since 2016 (participant/supporter since 2014)

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Being a witness to the growth and evolution of the young people who I work with (watching them progress from adolescence until young adulthood).

Q: What makes a good party?A: A party with a purpose (one that supports the good work of organizations that are changing the negative narrative that hangs over our great city) plus music, food, and friends.

Q: What's your astrological sign/personality color?A: Sagittarius hd

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I march to the beat of my own drum. Since I was a little girl, I've always done what others said that I could not do. I'm the youngest Director at my organization and I was just promoted to the Chief of Staff (the youngest person to ever hold that position in our organization's history). I strive to give a voice to the voiceless and hope to the hopeless.

Grace Johnson

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: Committee member

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: I like to make a difference, and I think a key component of that is how you communicate with others. Both of these interests align professionally and academically with my goals and will continue to shape how I pursue opportunities and try to inspire positive changes in the world.

Q: What makes a good party?A: Music! I love to dance.

Q: What's your astrological sign/personality color?A: According to most astrologists, I'm a Leo, but given how the Earth/moon/sun have shifted over time, some astrologists would say I'm a Cancer.

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I don't think people can just stand by and watch as the world changes. That's not to say that everyone needs to be a protester or a demonstrator, but I firmly believe that you can't just expect the world to get better without putting in any effort. I try to make the world a better place by doing what I believe is right and working hard so I can make an even larger impact down the road.

Michael Vega

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: Board Member

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Enabling our board to support the sexual health, rights, and identities of ICAH youth.

Q: What makes a good party?A: The people!

Q: What's your astrological sign/personality color?A: I'm a Leo.

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: Never accepting the status quo.

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: My favorite part of working on behalf of ICAH is to advance the efforts of an organization that authentically, consistently, and creatively centers youth. ICAH lives its values and speaks truth to power systems as it dismantles archaic notions and mythology.

Q: What makes a good party?A: Great people, tasty food, and awesome music!

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I am an optimist who remains resolute on the power of our collective community to make the world better. I believe in social change and in our fundamental need for interdependence. With these foundations, I choose to prioritize my family and all my relations, given and chose, first. I am an immigrant Mexicana born in an adobe house made by my parents. I was raised in Little Village and lived beautiful summers in Durango. My parents had no more than a 3rd and 6th grade education, while I have a master's from University of Chicago, and I'm still trying to understand the depth of their wisdom and knowledge. I stand firmly on the shoulders of my ancestors and know where I come from. My revolutionary act is knowing who I am and that I will never stop learning, questioning, and loving.

Maria-Elena Agrela

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: Adult Ally

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Connecting with my students, building relationships in the community, and providing resources for those who need it.

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: I'm a numbers nerd, so crunching numbers is my thing. But more importantly, I love getting to see the organization navigate this terrible climate and continue to grow while benefiting young people in areas that aren't talked about very openly. Sexual health conversations are so important!

Q: What makes a good party?A: Queer & trans people of color, and house music!

Q: What's your astrological sign/personality color?A: Aquarius

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I don't necessarily think I'm a revolutionary. I just try to be authentic to myself and people I share space with and live with integrity, which hopefully translates into only good things for all of us fighting white supremacy and patriarchy!

Aisha Chaudhri

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: I'm ICAH's Education Manager.

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Infusing the intersecting social justice movements into the way we talk about sex ed and knowing this is wanted from an organizational perspective. Also hearing back from youth facilitators about stepping into their role as a teacher and all that transforms in them.

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: Being in the education world, I have so many different opportunities to give people knowledge they've never had before and to plant seeds as a trajectory for their own curiosity. I feel that ICAH's approach is much more comprehensive than so many other organizations', and we help people think about things in ways they never have before.

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I choose to be brave whenever I can. If there's a brave approach to something, that's what I try to do. I think of that scene in Lord of the Rings when Galadriel tells Frodo: "If you do not find a way, no one will." It's my version of "be the change you want to see in the world," and it's true: no one can do what you can do, so you gotta find a way to do it, and usually that requires a certain amount of bravery.

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Designing sex ed curricula with CHAT young people. Working with outside organizations to design sex ed residencies and sessions that make most sense for the young people they work with. Getting to explain to groups we work with that our curriculum is made in partnership with young people, with an anti-adultist, reproductive justice, sex-positive framework.

Q: What makes a good party?A: Good food! Good music. Queer and trans people, lol. But it's true.

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: Revolution, to me, is about the work we do to transform oppressive systems, the way we keep each other cared for in that process, and the new structures and freedoms we build as we go. I try my very best to hold all three of these parts in my work as an activist and an educator, as well as in my personal relationships and the rest of my life. I try to show up as my authentic self, work hard, facilitate challenging conversations, decenter myself and whiteness in general, give myself time, space, and care to heal my own trauma and connect with others around it, respect other's boundaries and desires without making assumptions before I've asked what they are, decolonize love from possession, remember that the work is ongoing and do my best to stay in it for the long haul.

Nataly Barrera

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: Deputy Director

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Everything! I love to see our youth grow in their leadership.

Q: What makes a good party?A: Great music and fun people.

Q: What's your astrological sign/personality color?A: Leo

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: Parenting is revolutionary, right?! As a parent, I'm raising my baby to be compassionate, socially conscious, and to respect and advocate for basic human rights.

Alex Tey

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: I facilitate workshops and direct, act in, and make participatory theatre with ICAH.

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Seeing students who are clearly not used to being engaged in this way light up and join the conversation!

Q: What makes a good party?A: Not much of a party animal over here. A good party to me is a few friends, BBQ, and a board game.

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: I am an adult ally and member of the CHAT network.

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: As a sexual health educator teaching comprehensive sexual health education in Elmwood Park, IL, I love knowing that through teaching, I can impact teens (even if it is just a couple!) to make proud and responsible decisions about their sexual health. As a member of ICAH, I love coming together with other organizations who provide very valuable and important information about sexual health and health care rights to the youth they work with. It is so amazing to be surrounded by people who are working towards the same goal as I am. <3

Q: What makes a good party?A: Great music; lots of dancing; good food :)

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I speak my mind, I tell the truth, I stand up for who I am, and I don't let anyone dull my sparkle! I help others because I enjoy it, not because I want bragging rights. Stay humble <3

Tiffany Pryor

Q: What's your relationship to ICAH?A: I started off as a Community Organizing intern during my MSW program at DePaul University in 2009-2010. I was hired on as a part-time youth policy council coordinator in the fall of 2010 and then became a full-time youth development coordinator in 2011. Since then, I spearheaded ICAH's previous strategic plan to organize youth and adults within healthcare, family, and school systems, and my most recent relationship with ICAH is as the Executive Director!

Q: What's your favorite part of your work?A: Witnessing youth, staff, board members, and community partners step into their power and leadership. It's so delightful when I see someone "get it" and really challenge the ways they've previously thought about young people and sexual decision-making. I also thoroughly enjoy being pushed to think differently or more expansively so that our movement remains irresistible.

Q: What makes a good party?A: Music and silly dancing!!!! Also, duh, good food :)

Q: What's your astrological sign/personality color?A: I'm a Virgo through and through. I like to think I'm a magnificent shade of purple <3

Q: What makes you an everyday revolutionary?A: I am true to my values and do not waver when it comes to centering young people in all of the work I, and we, do. Because young people are typically left out of conversations and ICAH centers youth voice, I think it's a pretty revolutionary act to say, "because we center, value, and partner with young people, these are the ways we are engaging in these issue areas."

Being the daughter of young parents, so many stereotypes were placed on me and my family, and while everyone's story is unique and different, I think it's pretty amazing to be the Executive Director of a reproductive justice organization that provides the support to young people that I know my parents would have loved and also recognizes that we all have a right to bodily autonomy and are experts in our own lives--meaning, do what's best for you and ICAH will be here to support you. <3

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Thank you to the organizations and businesses that helped make our 40th Anniversary possible: